


Lesson Twelve; The One About the Dog

by an_evasive_author



Series: Continued Studies of Fatherhood [12]
Category: The Silmarillion and other histories of Middle-Earth - J. R. R. Tolkien
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Childhood, Dogs, Fluff, The Goodest of Boys
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-26
Updated: 2019-12-26
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:40:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21972985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/an_evasive_author/pseuds/an_evasive_author
Summary: Huan may be Tyelkormo's companion, but that does not mean that he is glued to his master's side. He has his own interests and his own pride. A shame that Ambarussa cares about neither.
Series: Continued Studies of Fatherhood [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1410001
Comments: 6
Kudos: 43





	Lesson Twelve; The One About the Dog

Ambarussa loved Huan. Why, no one but they knew, for Huan was a grumbling, hard to impress sort that did not care for being brushed and petted and played with. His size usually helped to keep it that way.

Except for Irissë who did not care about threatening rumbles and puffed up cheeks while she smushed Huan's face and tugged at his flews. One needed to be wary of that one.

But that had been it, to show that petting was off limits, no touching safe that which was necessary, he had his pride. Aside from that, Huan knew when to clear the perimeters to escape the ear-pulling and the brushing.

And then the smallest ones came along and all rules were pointedly ignored in favour of their own amusement.

They would smush his snoot and make shrill sounds when he blew up his cheeks and grumble-growled at them. That was usually the extend of it, the grumbling. He held no anger towards them, they were small and not very smart, after all, he could recognize that.

But that did not mean he enjoyed getting his ears and tail pulled or his paws tugged at. Still, barking and getting the wee ones upset would make Tyelkormo upset and _that_ would mean Huan would hunt his own dinner.

He would never go _hungry_ , he was too good a hunter for that. But bunnies who had never eaten anything but bitter plants and grass were not choice fillet cuts. And so Huan submitted to the twins' attention with stoic endurance and dreamed of fillet to remind himself why he even bothered.

When one considered the current circumstances, Huan supposed his predicament could have been worse.

He lay on the hearthrug, head resting on the abrasive fabric. His legs where tugged underneath him, so little elflings could not pull at them, though his tail and ears where unprotected still. Nothing he could do against that.

Tyelkormo did not pay heed to Huan's plight and instead only admonished the twins with a cursory snort and a half-hearted attempt at chasing them off.

But as it stood Huan was left to suffer their attentions alone. They crawled over him, as if he was some manner of fuzzy mountain to scale. Telvo hugged him as if he was a stuffy and Huan became like a statue, unmoving, unflinching and unimpressed.

Tyelkormo looked from where he sat and gave Huan a wry sort of look. “They will pester you until you react, you know. Playing hard to get only encourages them, you old grump.”

Huan sighed, a long suffering sound, and closed his eyes.

* * *

Salvation came in the form of naptime. When the screams of Ambarussas indignation at having been plucked off their favourite playmate had faded, Huan yawned and stretched. His legs had fallen asleep, all four of them. He flopped to his side and stretched before flipping and flopping his tail about to shake feeling back into it. What an ordeal. He yawned and murred a snort. At least now there was peace.

There had been a bath, Ambarussa smelled of dog, and screaming fits from Pityo because there was always something to scream about.

Always.

Not even necessarily out of anger, it simply seemed as if yelling about it was the surest way to draw attention to something. Pityo _enjoyed_ bathing. So he screeched.

But there were of course also things not so nice that needed to be cried about. So much so that he had been carried out the room so as not to disturb his twin brother.

Oh, naps were just no fun at all. So much would be _missed_ when he slept. How terrible.

“No!” called Pityo with all the desperate zeal of one being dragged off to bed, the worst of all fates.

Nelyafinwe, unsympathetic to Pityo's plight, still cradled him in his arms in an attempt to somehow rock him sleepy. Pityo groused and gave no inclination of going to sleep.

Angry that his twin had broken solidarity and already snored quietly to himself, Pityo fumed to himself with his brow creased.

“Look how serious he is,” Nelyafinwe said and ruffled his brother's hair. There came, predictably, a great show of displeasure and puffed up cheeks and the desperate attempt to look intimidating. If anything that made Nelyafinwe even more eager to tease his tiniest brother.

“Don't be mean,” Nerdanel said and kissed Pityo on the cheek.

Pityo laughed before remembering that he was still angry.

“Aren't you tired?” Nelyafinwe asked him, still grinning.

“No!” called Pityo, hollered it, really. He was not tired, not tired in the least. No matter how nice it felt to be held like this and how warm the bath had been.

“Really?” Nelyafinwe tried.

“No!”

A sagely nod from Nelyafinwe who would finally capitulate and playtime could be had again, “I see, you are not tired in the least, then?”

Triumphant, Pityo nodded, “No!” he crowed.

“See, I knew it, glad you agree,” Nelyafinwe said, poked Pityo's nose and carried him to bed.

Outsmarted! How mean! How cruel! Pityo made to scream and yawned instead. What an insult! Even his own body betrayed him.

He was tucked in and the blankets were horribly soft; He made to _kick_ them off! That would show them.

Instead he yawned once more and when his head was petted, it was all over. He fell asleep a moment later.

* * *

They tiptoed out of the nursery and closed the brightly painted door with all the care one might give a priceless piece of glass before they nearly fell into each other's arms when no screaming started.

“I am endlessly glad that they tire each other out” Nerdanel sighed in relief but this did not last. “But I already dread the day when they won't take naps anymore.” Because the Valar only knew where they would get the energy to keep up with them.

Nelyafinwe shrugged, he was forever an optimist, and smiled, “I wouldn't worry too much.”

“Whatever the case, now it is your father's turn. Would you get him, I shall round up your brothers.”

“I could do that,” Nelyafinwe offered.

Nerdanel smiled fondly at her forever most obedient and agreeable sons but shook her head, “I need to confirm to myself that can at least get some of my sons to listen to me.

“I listen to you, amil.”

“You do not count,” Nerdanel said and made to reassure herself by herding in her not quite as obedient and agreeable sons.

* * *

When it came to his work, Fëanáro was, in a sense, a creature of routine. Not in the sense many other elves were, admittedly. He had no entrenched habits, no manner of work that he liked more than any other. And, of course, he had the means to pursue his whims and his flights of fancy.

But once he had started a work in earnest, it became nearly impossible to get focused on anything else. Nothing would break his routine. Right up until the moment something else came along.

This newest of attempts at something never before witnessed, that had seen him sequestered away for nearly six cycles and by now, having expanded most of his energy on remaining utterly focused, he could admit that he was now exhausted.

Very much so.

He had made it to the pantries, caught up with most of his forgotten meals and was still draining an entire carafe of water when Nelyo found him and dragged him off towards the nursery.

“I cannot remember ever volunteering,” Fëanáro admitted as he stumbled through the long hallways.

“A shame, you should go to bed more often then,” Nelyo replied. “We won't be long. And Tyelko will leave you Huan for company.”

“No dogs in the nursery,” Fëanáro said for his brain desperately tried to dredge up something resembling a working thought. A single one would suffice, simply to prove that his brain had not simply fried somewhere along the way.

“Yes, he won't be there. We already brought Ambarussa to bed, atya. Just sit with them in case they need something.”  
Fëanáro nodded and tried to wonder why the hallways were so long.

* * *

Silence.

It was the silence that made him wake.

Never before would Huan had thought it possible to be bothered by the _absence_ of the twins noises. It was too still to be a good sign. Far too peaceful, Huan's eyes opened and he lifted his head from his paws even as he began sniffing to find out what was wrong. There was always some manner of vocalisation audible.

But now? No cooing, no babbling, only Fëanáro who snored to himself, splayed out in his chair.

Huan's ears swivelled about as he tried to catch any of the telltale sounds of Ambarussa.

Snorting, Huan pulled himself up and craned his neck so he might take a peek into the nursery.

The crib had tipped over. The blanket lay a few feet away, as if someone had tangled themselves into the fabric, made to get free and dragged it with them until successful disentangling had occurred.

Fëanáro lay splayed in his chair, the book he had tried to read fallen out of sight. His leg twitched a little and his face contorted into a grimace as he huffed before he fell slack again.

Huan, who knew that no help would be forthcoming, pressed his nose to the ground and snuffled to find the wayward nuisances.

Because, nuisances or not, they were _his_ nuisances and he would not see them harmed. A wet nose snorted, snuffled, sniffed and Huan whirled about towards the scent of goat milk and oats from their soap, the mashed potatoes they had eaten.

Where could they have gotten off to?

He huffed and followed the trail until it all made sense. The door had been only leaned on.

They had bumbled their way outside, all the way over the lawn and underneath the fence and were playing at-- He swallowed his own snort; The river! The raging waters there would have been no problem for one such as Huan who was the size of a small horse. He could wade through. But the _twins_...

A hoarse whine escaped him and Huan flew into a panicked sprint so fast, his hindlegs did no catch on right away and his rear slid over the floor for a moment before he reached the open window and jumped through without hesitation, baying wildly.

He thundered across the grass, saw that the gate had not been closed all the way. Curious infants had pushed it open in their quest for adventure, most likely helped each other where one child alone would have failed.

Wild baying could be heard from the outside, though Fëanáro did not wake.

A grey blur chased over the lawn towards the two infants with all the considerable speed he had in great leaps. He was a large dog, large enough to clear the fence in a single motion and with space to spare as he vaulted it like a horse might have.

He landed smoothly, pressed on into the dense brush.

There were holes in the wild grasses and the shrubs, the perfect size for little toddlers to weave through without getting stuck. Little trails, perfect for aimless wandering. It must have felt like a great, exciting forest for them and so they had toddled ever further, eager to find more grand adventures.

Like a grey giant he loomed behind them, not yet certain how to proceed, now that the danger was no longer occupying his mind.

The twins turned, though Telvo took longer to react, focused on a leaf he had picked somewhere, when Huan reached them.

They looked unharmed, stout and, most importantly, no one had taken a tumble into the waters. Both acted quite chipper, blissfully unaware of the white-foaming doom right below them.

Not that they had any reason not to. The twins had not yet any perception of danger. For them, the world was a great and inviting playground, with only ever new wonders to discover.

They were, for a large part, right, of course. Very few things would ever present a danger, even to a very small elf.

But a rushing river, dotted with deep spots and currents eager to pull twigs and leaves and tiny elves under...No, that was certainly not fun to imagine.

Huan slumped in momentary relief and snorted when the worst of the stress dissipated.

Ambarussa both beamed brightly, “Huan!” they called, happy to have another playmate, utterly oblivious to the danger gurgling right next to them.

The leaf was thrust into Huan's face, with Telvo eager to share his treasure.

Huan snorted and ruffled one of their little heads and the child giggled in utter delight.

Just as well. Now, how to get them home?

They had no thick, convenient nape on their necks to carry them with, which seemed like some manner of great oversight. And even if they had, he could not have, try as he might, carried two at once.

So, no teeth. He could not drag them at their sleeves, the only free hanging fabric in which to potentially sink teeth into for a firm grip, same problem, more screaming.

Pushing? They could barely balance themselves as it was, pushing would send them face first to the ground with every try, no doubt. So that too, no.

He dared not leave their side to fetch Fëanáro, for while he had far less reserves about trying everything he had to wake _that one_ up, he also did not wish to push his luck and lead Fëanáro to an empty riverside with the little twins washed away.

Pityo and Telvo had begun squabbling about the leaf while Huan still tried to find a way to bring them back home.

Well, there was _one_ idea that came to mind...

Sighing, his forelegs came down and his tail wagged. He barked once to get their attention and when they saw him so playfully wagging and inviting, they squealed in delight. What an irresistible siren call, to see their favourite playmate so eager.

They nearly tumbled over each other but their course was set. “Huan,” they said and eager, bright eyes glittered as they toddled towards him unerringly.

Ambarussa had nearly reached him when he carefully began to manoeuvrer backwards, always just a little out of reach, just enough so they would not loose interest in an impossible undertaking but far enough so they would not grab for grey fur and pull at him.

He hoped fervently that no one would see the little procession of two red-headed toddlers stumbling towards a backwards walking hound. What a sight that must have been...

But the important part was that the made it back and Huan reached over the twins to pull the chord at the gate to shut it finally. No more running past that. That had the unintended side-effect that they no clutched at his legs and he shook them loose before prancing about to entice them the rest of the way. He jabbed and whined playfully, something he had not done since he had been a very small pup with very big paws.

And then, of course, the nursery. He pushed his head under the wood and righted it again, grabbed the blanket and threw it inside with a sharp fling of his head.

He could hardly do the same with Ambarussa, for obvious reasons. But it would have to do. With a low murr he slumbed his shoulders in earnest relief. How lucky that he was already grey...

And not a moment too soon, for the twins had begun to clamour for Fëanáro's attention.

There was a loud, startled snort and the so far unresponsive form of Fëanáro shuddered once as he came awake. He stretched, gathered his legs into proper position and blinked. He looked _amazingly_ frazzled for someone who had done very little but snore about while Huan had run around trying to save Fëanáro's offspring from themselves.

The twins, delighted, chirped about and pulled at his robe until Fëanáro looked down. And look he did, first with the blurred, filmy eyes of one roughly interrupted in their slumber and then, suddenly with the eyes of one who's brain had just finished assembling the puzzle before them.

“What are you doing out of your bed?” he asked and lifted them both onto his lap. A leaf was offered and he took it, “How-?

And the twins, forever protected from blame by the virtue of being the smallest and very, very cute, laughed brightly. “Huan!” they called as one and poor Huan felt his tail droop when Fëanáro whipped about to the pony-sized dog in the nursery.

* * *

He had been thrown out, which was unsurprising. Huan was, in his own way, an accepted member of the family, he had no doubt about that. He himself had accepted them as his somewhat hapless superiors, after all.

Family was allowed nearly everywhere, yes. But he was also large both Nerdanel and Fëanáro endlessly worried about what such a giant hound could do if allowed to clamper about in a nursery where tiny things were.

Huan could be talked to like any elf and so he had been politely asked to not go into there and he had _respected_ that. He could be perfectly reasonable and really, what business would he have had in there?

Being able to reason like an elf also meant that he had to endure the same shame like one as the others were told of the exploits Huan and the twins had supposedly gone on to, with only Fëanáro's perspective to fill in the clues. There was laughter and teasing, of course. All family members were treated alike in that manner.

He had sat in the corner for a while, of his own volition, for that was the most popular form of punishment in the House of Fëanáro and easily recognized. He had not offered an explanation and sat there until supper was served.

And after that he had planted himself on the hearthrug and made to nap until the twins once more came to badger him.

Even though they where terribly annoying at times, they also knew just how to get Huan to overlook their slights.

They brought him a cooked chicken breast and giggled delighted when Huan scarfed it down with loud smacking noises. Slopping his large tongue over his chops, he moved on to lick their fingers and Telvo's face, for the little elf had snuck in a bite when his twin hadn't been looking.

They gave bright, delighted giggles and made to boop his wet nose but Huan anticipated this and snorted mightily, ruffling their hair.

And they petted him, of course. The worst part about that was that they were terribly good at that. Terribly good.

His hind leg began shaking and kicking in bliss and his tail wagged, flopped against the floor, to his everlasting shame. What traitors they were. And worse, he could barely bring himself to care.

Perhaps they where not all that bad, all things considered. At least they appreciated the effort Huan put in.

And when they used him as a pillow, Huan did not chase them away this time.


End file.
